Succubus
In folklore that stems from medieval legend[clarification needed], a succubus (plural succubi) is a demon who takes the form of a woman to seduce men in dreams to have sexual intercourse. In modern times, a succubus may or may not appear in dreams and is often depicted as highly attractive, while in the past succubi were depicted as frightening and demonic.[1] The male counterpart is the incubus.
Succubi draw energy from men to sustain themselves, often until the victim becomes exhausted or dies.[citation needed] In one such story,[2] a man in the town of Koblenz is bewitched by a succubus, with whom he is forced to repeatedly fornicate in the presence of his wife. The story says that, "After an incredible number of such bouts, the poor man at last sinks to the floor utterly exhausted and disgusted beyond belief." From mythology and fantasy, Lilith and the Lilin (Jewish) and Lilitu (Sumerian) are in redactive Christian fables (folktales not part of official Christian theology), considered forms of succubi.
According to the Malleus Maleficarum, or "Witches' Hammer", written by Heinrich Kramer (Insitoris) in 1486, a succubus collects semen from the men she sleeps with, which incubi then use to impregnate women,[3] thus explaining how demons could apparently sire children despite the traditional belief that they were incapable of reproduction. Children so begotten were supposed to be those that were born deformed, or more susceptible to supernatural influences.[4]
Etymology
First attested 1387, derived from Late Latin succuba "strumpet", used to describe the supernatural being as well. From succubare "to lie under", from sub- "under" and cubare "to lie".[5]
Qarinah
In Islamic superstition, the qarînah (قرينه) is a spirit similar to the succubus, with origins possibly in ancient Egyptian religion or in the animistic beliefs of pre-Islamic Arabia (see Arabian mythology).[6] A qarînah "sleeps with the person and has relations during sleep as is known by the dreams."[7] They are said to be invisible, but a person with "second sight" can see them, often in the form of a cat, dog, or other household pet.[6] "In Omdurman it is a spirit which possesses. ... Only certain people are possessed and such people cannot marry or the qarina will harm them."[8]
Succubi in fiction
See also
References
- ^ Curran, Bob (2006), Encyclopedia of the Undead: A Field Guide to Creatures That Cannot Rest in Peace, p. 21, Career Press, ISBN 1564148416
- ^ Kramer, Heinrich and Sprenger, James (1486), Summers, Montague (translator - 1928), The Malleus Maleficarum, Part2, Chapter 2, Question 1
- ^ Kramer, Heinrich and Sprenger, James (1486), Summers, Montague (translator - 1928), The Malleus Maleficarum, Part2, Chapter VIII, "Certain Remedies prescribed against those Dark and Horrid Harms with which Devils may Afflict Men," at sacred-texts.com
- ^ Lewis, James R., Oliver, Evelyn Dorothy, Sisung Kelle S. (Editor) (1996), Angels A to Z, Entry: Incubi and Succubi, pp. 218, 219, Visible Ink Press, ISBN 0-7876-0652-9
- ^ Harper, Douglas. "succubus". Online Etymology Dictionary.
- ^ a b Zwemer, Samuel M. (1939). "5". Studies in Popular Islam: Collection of Papers dealing with the Superstitions and Beliefs of the Common People. London: Sheldon Press.
- ^ Tremearne, A. J. N. Ban of the Bori: Demons and Demon-Dancing in West and North Africa.
- ^ Trimingham, J. Spencer (1965). Islam in the Sudan. London: Frank Cass & Co. Ltd. p. 172.